


I can't lose another

by Anonymous



Category: Mass Effect - All Media Types
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-14
Updated: 2021-03-14
Packaged: 2021-03-22 21:48:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,094
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30045240
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: Why would Thane get in the way?
Relationships: Thane Krios/Male Shepard
Comments: 1
Kudos: 4
Collections: Spectre Requisitions 2021





	I can't lose another

**Author's Note:**

  * For [shepardismycopilot](https://archiveofourown.org/users/shepardismycopilot/gifts).



> Siva is the male version of Siha that I made up. It was betaed by the amazing Evil Sapphyre

Mark watched the figure in the corner staring at them while they entered the recruitment room. He had noticed them a few days ago, when he had come looking for info on Mordin, and something told him that the person had wanted him to see them. When they left the recruitment room, he saw that the figure was gone, which didn’t surprise him. What did surprise him was when the same figure stepped out of the shadows in front of them when they are on the way to the pickup point. 

“Commander Shepard?”

Mark stopped and felt Mordin and Zaeed do the same behind him. “That’s me. Who are you and what can I do for you?”

The figure came fully into the light and Mark was shocked to see it was the Drell from the Cerberus dossiers. The Drell that Cerberus had tried and failed to find or contact up to that point.

“My name is Thane Krios, and I have heard that your group has been looking for me.”

Mark wrinced and shook his head. “Not my group, but that’s a long story— one I don’t have time for right now. If you want to head to the ship, we can talk more about it then.”

Thane didn’t move from in front of Mark, frowning at him, before he took a step closer and stood straight, his hands behind his back.

“Actually I would like to join your team if you will permit me to. I have a target waiting where you are going, and they will overlook me if I enter within the company of your team.”

“A target?” Mark narrowed his eyes in suspension, and Thane straightened up even more under his piercing gaze.

“You needn’t fear; my target is not the turian you seek to rescue, but a batarian that is using the Blue Suns to hide from me. Help me reach this batarian and find the last one on my list, and I will join your team for whatever your mission is.” Thane stood waiting for Mark’s decision. 

Mark thought for a moment and nodded his head.

“I can agree to those terms, but you have to help us save Archangel. Once we are on the ship, I will give you all the details on our mission. Sound fair?”

“I agree to those terms.” Thane moved and held out his hand. Mark reached out and they shook on the agreement. Thane then brought out his helmet and put it on before they all headed for the pickup point. The gang member there didn’t even blink at a party of four instead of three. He was just glad for more people to throw at Archangel.

Once they made it past the next checkpoint guard, Thane turned to Shepard. 

“Please go on ahead. I will join you before you must go after the turian. You have my word.”

Mark nodded and watched Thane disappear into the shadows. He frowned a little and then shook his head. He needed to focus on his current rescue mission, not on his new Drell squadmate. Signaling for the other to move forward, he decided that he would get the details to Thane’s mystery later.

**************************************

Months later, Mark marched angrily out of the shuttle and headed for the elevator without a word to his team. While he was waiting, Garrus stepped off the shuttle looking worriedly after the Commander. He watched Mark get into the elevator and hit the button without turning around again to face the shuttle bay. When the doors had closed, Garrus turned his gaze to the third member of their party, letting out a worried subvocal. Thane still sat inside of the darkened shuttle, stiff and straight, as he stared forward seemingly lost to his own thoughts. Stepping back into the vehicle, he walked up to the Drell and reaching out carefully touched the other’s shoulder. It showed how deep the assassin was into his thoughts when he gasped, and his head snapped toward Garrus at the touch.

“Come on, Thane. Let’s head up to the crew deck. Shepard will cool down soon, and then you two can talk out whatever happened back there.”

Thane nodded before standing, every movement stiff-rigid. He stepped off the shuttle with Garrus, walking swiftly to the elevator. Garrus looked more and more worried.

***********************************

Thane sat in his usual place in Life Support; his hands were folded in front of him, his chin rested on them, and his mind was caught up in the events of the last mission.

‘ _ Shepard moves in front of me. His shields go down. An enemy aims for him; I jump in front of him taking the hit. My shields barely hold. Shepard takes down the enemy but glares at me. He does not speak to me on the return journey.’ _

Thane shutters, pulling himself from the memory. It had been two days since that mission, and Shepard had not come for their daily talks. Thane found himself at a loss as to what to do. He had viewed the memory multiple times, but he could not understand why Shepard had been so angry with him. The drell had to admit that he missed talking with Mark. 

Yes, that is what he had been asked to call the Commander. Especially when Thane had finally told him about what had happened to his wife. It had warmed a part of him - a part he thought was forever frozen. That was until Mark had gone out of his way to help Thane track down the last of his wife’s killers. More-so, there had been no judgment in Mark’s eyes, even when Thane didn’t come back until over a day later. Sighing gently, Thane moved to rest his forehead on his folded hands, once more losing himself in his thoughts.

“Sere Krios?”

Thane jumped slightly at EDI’s voice and felt embarrassed at how deeply he had been lost in his own thoughts

“Yes, EDI. How may I help you?”

“The Commander has requested your presence in his cabin, at your earliest convenience.”

“I...see.” Thane paused for a moment and taking a deep breath nodded. “Please tell him that I will be there momentarily.”

“Of course. Logging you out, Sere Krios.”

Thane sat there for a few moments, working to fully center himself. Then he stood and left his room, heading straight for the elevator, grateful that there was no one in the hallway to question him. Once he reached Mark’s cabin, he stood a moment outside the doors, then shook his head at his own hesitation, pushing the button in the middle of the door. He was just able to hear the chime inside the room letting the other man know that he was here.

“Come in.”

Thane entered the room and found Mark standing at the bottom of a set of stairs, waiting for him.

“Thane, come and have a seat, please. We need to talk.”

Thane went down the stairs and went to sit stiffly on the one side of the couch, while Mark took the other side. For several moments, they stared at each other, and finally, Mark sighed.

“Thane, I need to know, why did you jump in front of that shot during our last mission?”

“Your shields were down.”

“And you’ve seen that my armor can take a few hits without it. So why did you step in the way like that? You could have gotten yourself killed.”

“I…” Thane stared at Mark for a moment and then shook his head looking down at his lap.

Mark frowned and after a moment sighed and came to sit on the table in front of Thane.

“Thane, talk to me, please. I just want to understand.”

Thane continued to look down at his hands balled up in his lap.

“I could not lose another person that I care for. Not if I could prevent it this time.”

Mark blinked in surprise at the other man. Many reasons had crossed his mind, in the last two days, as to why Thane had done what he did, but that was not one of them.

“Thane are you saying…”

“That I care for you as I once did for my wife? Yes.” His hands tighten in his lap. “You have woken me from my battle sleep. You did not judge me based on my career. You talked to me, as an equal, and wanted to get to know me. You helped me grieve for my wife when I have been numb and focused on revenge for so long. You helped me put a final end to the ones that desecrated her. You have become precious to me over these many months, and I am unsure what would happen if I lost you as well.”

Thane jerked when Mark’s hands appeared and to cover his own. He slowly looked up and saw Mark smiling gently at him.

“I’ve come to care for you too, Thane, but after you told me about your wife,” Mark squeezed his hands. “I didn’t want to seem like I was trying to take her place. I also wasn’t entirely sure you would accept a male as a partner, and I would never want to make you feel uncomfortable, or like you had to return my feelings.”

Thane moved his hands so that one of Mark’s was held between his hands.

“I do not know what I have done, for the gods to bless me twice in my life. But I will gladly spend what time we with you, Siva.”

“Siva?” Mark tilted his head in confusion.

“A male warrior-angel for the goddess, Arashu. Fierce in wrath and a tenacious protector.”

Mark leaned forward and kissed Thane’s forehead.

“I will try to live up to that name.”

They smiled at each other for a moment, then Mark stood and slowly pulling his hand free went up to his deck area and brought back two cups of tea.

“Now how about we sit and talk? I have to admit I’ve really missed our chats. The day didn’t seem complete without them.”

Thane gave a small smile and nodded, a happy gleam in his eye, while he took one of the cups from Mark. Mark sat down beside him, taking one of Thane’s hands into his, and they talked well into the night.

*********************************

Thane made his way up to their cabin. They had moved all of his things up here a month ago, and now they were about to head toward the Relay and try to rescue the crew taken by the Collectors. He was hoping to spend a little time with Mark before they hit the relay.

Entering the cabin, Thane looked around and spotted Mark at the desk by his bed. Mark looked up and smiled at him, standing to meet him halfway.

“Siva, I was hoping to spend some time with you. We do not know how this mission will go, and I would have a good memory before the possible end.”

Mark leaned forward and rested their heads together for several long long minutes. They merely stood there, letting the presence of the other calm their fears and uncertainties.

“If there is any mercy from your or any gods, they will let us either both survive or allow both of us to find the other in the next world.”

Thane nodded and pulled back, smiling and cupping the other’s man cheek.

“I will be awaiting you across the sea if my time ends, and will wait to join you if the worst comes to pass and you make the journey before me.”

“But no losing yourself as you did before. Please I would hate to know you didn’t live to your fullest just because of me.” Mark put his hand over Thane’s on his cheek and gripped the other in his other hand.

“It will be hard, but I will do the best I can to follow your wish. I would ask the same of you if our position are reversed.”

A look of pain crossed Mark’s face but his nodded his head.

“You have my word, Thane.” 

They stood there for several more minutes, and then Mark leaned forward and kissed Thane, before pulling back. 

“I don’t want to think about that anymore for the moment. Let it just be the two of us, tonight.”

Thane nodded and moved forward, embracing Mark and running his hand through the other’s hair., As they moved toward the bed, they lost themselves in the feel and presence of the other.


End file.
